Tag: character deaths

The biggest part of Game of Thrones is most definitely the character deaths. While most of them, and most of the series, is incredibly soul crushing, there have been some deaths that have brought a great deal of joy to our lives!

So, brace yourselves the top 11 most satisfying deaths in GOT are coming!

(And so are spoilers.)

Image via Buzzfeed.

1. Lysa Arryn

Image via Blue Milk.

You have to admit, you wanted something bad to happen to her. And then, when it actually, happened you weren’t sure how to feel! Now don’t get me wrong, Lyssa did not necessarily deserve to die, but she sure as hell rubbed everyone the wrong way.

With her grossly wild obsession with Littlefinger—which drove her to murder her own husband—Lyssa was a really weak character who mistakenly believed she was powerful. On top of that, her relationship with her son, and the way she threatened Sansa and Tyrion, just made her grossly unlikeable!

(Also, the irony of being thrown down the Moon Door by her “lover” after threatening everyone else with it is pretty darn satisfying.)

2. The Waif

Image via Cosmopolitan.

Although she wasn’t a huge player throughout the series, the Waif was a threat to one of the fan-favorites: Arya Stark.

We all wanted to see Arya kick some major ass in Season 5, but, under the training of the Faceless Men, she is looked down on, beaten, and literally left blind!

Image via Giphy.

It was a very depressing time for GoT fans. Season 5 was rough to get through (and rougher for Arya).

That’s what makes the fight between Arya and the Waif such a relief to watch! As season 6 finally builds the series back up, the win for our girl Arya is a moment of satisfaction for fans, one that lifted all our hopes for the series.

Image via We Heart It.

Watch the full battle here!

3. Stannis Baratheon

Image via Time Magazine.

Love him, hate him, or feel something in between, everyone has a different opinion on Stannis. While there were a number of lovable aspects to his character, Stannis also did many unsavory things, like killing his own brother in the beginning of the series.

In spite of that, he grew on many people as a character who was neither trying to be cruel nor trying to be a hero. It was only until he tossed the one redeeming quality he had, his role as a genuinely kindhearted father, that fans desperately wanted to see him fail.

Image via Business Insider.

Yup! In a desperate play for success, he sacrificed the life of his daughter, dropping his approval rating back down to being one of the most hated characters in Game of Thrones.

Stannis becoming the worst father in Westeros (not an easy feat), and in general making a number of downright awful decisions, is not the only reason his death is so satisfying. The fact that Brienne of Tarth, who pledged herself to Renly’s Kingsguard back in Season 2, was the one who took him out brings everything neatly full circle.

I would’ve included Selyse Baratheon’s death, as she is the absolute worst mother of the year, but the fact that she took her life realizing how terrible she is makes it more upsetting and bittersweet.

4. Viserys Targaryen

Image via HelloGiggles.

Here’s another character we found unbearably annoying and couldn’t wait for karma knock down.

Viserys was always looking to get what he felt he deserved, and, like so many in the series, he claimed that the Iron Throne was his birthright. Unlike Stannis, however, Viserys really didn’t have any redeemable qualities. In fact, his death is one of the few deaths everyone can agree brought us nothing but joy!

After selling off his sister, the beloved Mother of Dragons Danaerys Targaryen, to the savage warrior tribe the Dothraki, Viserys becomes nothing more than whiny and abusive. With the tides turned and Danaerys gaining more power and happiness from her initially forced marriage, Viserys becomes more of a useless character.

To all of our delight, he was finally gone! And I guess you can say he got the crown he really deserved.

Image via Gyfcat.

What also makes this death so satisfying is Danny’s reaction to it and the power that she’s finally given! So satisfying!

5. Olenna Tyrell

Image via Cosmopolitan.

Who didn’t love Olenna?! I mean really! She was hilarious, full of wit, had more control of her situation than any other character, and she wasn’t a shitty person, like every other royal person who visited King’s Landing.

Her death, as unfortunate as it was, was perfect for her. Olenna didn’t suffer, and she took it like the total badass that she is! That alone would be enough to make everyone feel at ease, but what makes her death really great (which is weird to say, I know) is her confession at the end!

Skip to 4:05 for the good bits.

Finally, we learned of the Messiah that freed us of the pest that we all know as Joffrey!

Thank you Olenna, you wonderful badass!

Pretty much everyone’s reaction after her death. | Image via Tumblr.

6. Tywin Lannister

Image via Uproxx.

Love him or hate him, you have to hand it to him: the man commands respect.

Like Stannis, Tywin had likeable moments and less likeable moments. Despite his slightly pompous behavior, he definitely trended more towards likeable through sheer grudging respect.

It always seemed that with every arrogant or generally dislikable moment that Tywin had, he’d follow it up with a moment where you would think maybe he is a decent guy. That is… until he betrayed Tyrion—his own son—by running a rigged trial against him, sentencing him to death, and even admitting that he always wanted Tyrion to die.

There have also been things that Tywin has done that merit serious punishment. Let’s not forget the battle of The Mountain versus the Viper where Oberyn Martell tried to reveal that Tywin is the man who plotted the rape and murder of his sister and her children! Then there’s also the whole plotting the Red Wedding thing, pretty terrible stuff.

I’m getting ahead of myself, though. Aside from all of Tywin’s horrible qualities, what makes his death oh so satisfying is Tyrion. He needed this! This was a moment of power for him.

All the times he was insulted, scapegoated, and held captive, his very life threatened and out of his control, this was his moment of taking power into his own hands. What better way to do that by murdering your own cold, arrogant father in the most embarrassing way possible: on the porcelain throne!

Skip to 3:21-6:23 for the good bits.

7. Alliser Thorne

Image via Cosmopolitan.

Bitter and grouchy, Alliser Thorne was always a miserable face to see. Unhappy with his forced position in the Night’s Watch, he would take his bitterness out on all the new recruits as the Master-at-Arms. Alliser especially harbored negative feelings toward Jon Snow and Samwell Tarly, but he definitely had more animosity toward Jon.

Unlike many of the hated characters throughout the series, Alliser has no redeeming qualities and only seems to become worse of a human being with each moment he is on screen—especially since, unlike Viserys, he actually has power and is given more power over time. Not that he could be more hated by fans, but running a mutiny against Jon did not help make him any more popular.

In spite of seeing Alliser being punished in the end, it is still very bittersweet to watch the other members of the Night’s Watch, especially Olly, be executed alongside him.

8. Joffrey Baratheon

Image via Cosmopolitan.

The death we had all been waiting for! Surely I don’t need much of an explanation for this.

Joffrey was absolute garbage, and, really, I feel like I may be insulting garbage! He was rotten to the core, arrogant without any merit, obnoxious, immature… I can go on and on!

I think everyone can agree that he is the most detestable character that every existed in anything, which is probably not at all an exaggeration.

Image via Giphy.

I digress; everyone was waiting for Joffrey’s death. And if it weren’t so abrupt, I would’ve put it higher on this list. But as happy as we all were that he died, the sudden poisoning did leave some of us wanting a little more. Not to mention that the satisfaction of his death was short-lived since it put Tyrion’s life in danger and left us with the question of who did it.

It wasn’t until Olenna’s death that we were given the satisfaction of knowing who took Joffrey’s life.

9. The Freys

Image via movieweb.

Although they had little screen time throughout the seasons, the Freys are detestable for betraying the Starks and putting us through the Red Wedding, a scene that will live in infamy and is to thank for an increase in work for therapists everywhere!

Not only have they committed truly horrific acts, but they themselves are just downright gross in behavior! Walder Frey, head of the house, is a clear example of this. He’s not only arrogant, misogynistic, and selfish, but he treats his own family members like they are pawns.

Walder and the Freys’ end is so satisfying as it not only is well-deserved, but also well-executed! The fact that Arya takes them out using her newfound skills from the Faceless Men is the perfect twist ending to season 6!

10. Peter Baelish, a.k.a. Littlefinger

Image via Cosmopolitan.

Nobody really loves this man of manipulation, always hiding in the shadows, never fighting his own battles himself. Littlefinger was always conniving from beginning to end, so it seems right that his end would be of the same nature.

After tearing apart the sisters Catelyn and Lyssa Stark, using Lyssa for his own means, and playing both sides in the battle between the Starks and the Lannisters, Littlefinger is finally punished for all his crimes when Sansa and Arya join forces to take him down!

11. Ramsay Bolton

Image via The Telegraph.

And you thought that Joffrey was bad! Now, as obnoxious as Joffrey was, the torture that Ramsay put everyone he encountered through was on the level of nightmares.

That’s literal torture: murdering his own infant half-brother and brutal rape. There is no low too low for Ramsay. Even without the particulars of his death, Ramsay’s death would certainly be at the top of any satisfying deaths.

What makes his death even better is the fact that Sansa gets her revenge against him with that perfect coy smile.

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